Asian stocks advance

GLOBAL MARKETS

Asian stocks rose for a fifth day, led by banks and brokerages, after Citigroup offered to buy the shares it doesn't own of Nikko Cordial. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid on speculation a surge to a record high has overvalued companies' earnings prospects.

Nikko Cordial, Japan's third-largest brokerage, jumped by its daily limit while Nomura Holdings advanced. Cathay Financial Holding, Taiwan's No 1 financial group, climbed to a two-month high after agreeing to buy China United Trust & Investment Corp China Mobile, whose shares have almost doubled this year, led a drop in Hong Kong.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia-Pacific Index added 0.3 per cent to 166.71 as of 5:48 pm in Tokyo, after a four-day, 4.8 per cent rally that lifted the benchmark to a record. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 2.6 per cent, after jumping as much as 2.4 per cent in the morning session.

Europe

European bank stocks rose after Deutsche Bank AG reported an increase in third-quarter profit and Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. said shares of UK lenders have fallen too much.

Deutsche Bank climbed for a fifth day, while HSBC Holdings jumped the most in more than a month. Lagardere SCA led declining shares after French daily Le Figaro said managers at the company may have taken part in inside trading.

The Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index added less than 0.1 per cent to 382.91 as of 10:11 am in London. The measure has rallied 8.7 per cent since touching a five-month low on August 16 on speculation the contagion from the U.S. housing recession is receding and banks including Citigroup Inc. signaled the worst may be over.

US

US stock-index futures fell. Micron Technology shares dropped in Europe after the largest US maker of computer-memory chips reported a loss greater than some analysts expected.

Intel Corp and Advanced Micro Devices, the world's biggest makers of personal-computer processors, slipped after Morgan Stanley recommended clients reduce holdings of the shares.

Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures expiring in December lost 2.9 to 1,551.7 as of 10:31 am in London. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 19 to 14,087. Nasdaq-100 Index futures decreased 4.25 to 2,131.25.

US stocks were little changed yesterday, with most stocks rising after the pace of takeovers picked up and investors speculated falling August home sales may mark the bottom of the housing slump.